Seven in ten carts walk.Find the one driver that's bleeding you.
Set aside the shoppers who were just browsing, and a lot of what's left is fixable friction at the checkout itself. This gate scores your flow against the documented causes and names, where a driver is short, the single worst one to fix first, with two dispositive drivers that fail the whole checkout on their own.
The checkout is where the revenue you paid to acquire quietly walks out.
average documented cart abandonment rate across 50 studies (Baymard Institute, updated September 2025). In Baymard's survey, 42% of US online shoppers have abandoned a cart because they were just browsing.
cite extra costs too high (shipping, tax, fees), Baymard's top reason once "just browsing" is set aside (September 2025). Total cost is one of this gate's two dispositive signals.
cite being made to create an account, fourth on Baymard's list (September 2025) behind slow delivery (20%) and distrust of the site with card details (19%). It is the gate's second dispositive signal.
A headline like "70% abandonment" is too broad to act on. The fixable share traces to a short list of friction points, with extra costs at the top of Baymard Institute's list. This gate isolates which one is costing you most, on each flow, so the fix is a decision and not a guess.
Score one flow's seven signals and watch the dominant driver gate it.
Live gate · one checkout flow
Flow verdict
HEMORRHAGING
weakest 1 · mean 1.86
fix first: Total-cost transparency
Dominant-driver gate fired on Total-cost transparency. The gate treats a score of 1 or 0 there as dispositive, so the flow reads HEMORRHAGING regardless of how strong everything else is.
Show the full total — shipping, tax, fees — from the cart, never at the last step.
Grades a flow you describe — no store connection, no payments, scores no people. No conversion or recovery rate is guaranteed.
How the gate works, in one image
The seven signals with the verdict set by the weakest, and the dominant-driver gate that forces HEMORRHAGING on even a partial failure of total-cost transparency or guest checkout — the same math the demo runs, as a diagram you can share or embed anywhere.
View & embed the full diagramThe same verdict at the command line, across every flow at once.
A zero-dependency Python engine grades every checkout flow offline and prints a per-flow read plus the portfolio rollup. The workbook reproduces every number it returns — three-way identical by construction.
==========================================================================
CHECKOUT FRICTION & ABANDONMENT EXPOSURE GATE :: RedHub AI :: CFA-079
==========================================================================
Flows graded: 5 Exposure rate (share HEMORRHAGING): 60%
PORTFOLIO: PORTFOLIO HEMORRHAGING (worst: Main store checkout)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
[HEMORRHAGING] Main store checkout <- DOMINANT-DRIVER GATE (Total-cost transparency)
hidden_cost=1 forced_account=2 checkout_length=2 trust_signals=2 payment_options=2 mobile_readiness=2 delivery_clarity=2
min=1 mean=1.86 fix first: Total-cost transparency
-> Show the full total — shipping, tax, fees — from the cart, never at the last step.
[LEAKING] Mobile express lane
hidden_cost=2 forced_account=2 checkout_length=1 trust_signals=1 payment_options=1 mobile_readiness=1 delivery_clarity=1
min=1 mean=1.29 fix first: Checkout simplicity
-> Cut steps and fields to the minimum; add autofill and a progress indicator.
[HEMORRHAGING] Wholesale portal
hidden_cost=2 forced_account=0 checkout_length=2 trust_signals=2 payment_options=1 mobile_readiness=2 delivery_clarity=2
min=0 mean=1.57 fix first: Guest checkout offered
-> Offer prominent guest checkout; move account creation to after purchase.
[SMOOTH] Subscription signup
hidden_cost=2 forced_account=2 checkout_length=2 trust_signals=2 payment_options=2 mobile_readiness=2 delivery_clarity=2
min=2 mean=2.00
[HEMORRHAGING] Marketplace guest flow
hidden_cost=2 forced_account=2 checkout_length=0 trust_signals=1 payment_options=2 mobile_readiness=1 delivery_clarity=2
min=0 mean=1.43 fix first: Checkout simplicity
-> Cut steps and fields to the minimum; add autofill and a progress indicator.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Grades a flow you describe; no store connection, no payments, scores no people.
No conversion or recovery rate guaranteed. Not legal or financial advice.
==========================================================================Three rules keep the read honest.
MIN-as-headline
A flow is graded by its weakest signal, never the flattering average — because shoppers abandon at the single worst point of friction. Weakest 2 is smooth, 1 is leaking, 0 is hemorrhaging.
Two dispositive gates
Surprise total cost and forced account creation are both on Baymard Institute's documented list of abandonment reasons, with extra costs at the top. The gate treats either one as dispositive: even a partial failure forces HEMORRHAGING on its own, and a strong score elsewhere can't offset it.
Your flow, no multiplier
The verdict comes from your own description of the flow. No invented recovery rate, no industry lift, no store connection. It grades the checkout and, where a signal is short, names the fix — it scores the flow, never a person.
A diagnosis of your flow, not a connection and not a cure.
What it is
- A deterministic read of a checkout flow you describe — same verdict every time.
- A per-flow SMOOTH / LEAKING / HEMORRHAGING call with a portfolio rollup.
- Two dispositive gates: total-cost transparency and guest checkout.
- The fix-first driver for each flow where a driver is short, with a fix note attached.
What it isn't
- Not a store connection — it reads nothing live and processes no payments.
- Not a recovery tool — it diagnoses; you make the fix and re-score.
- Not a guaranteed conversion or recovery rate — no invented lift.
- It grades the flow, never a person, and isn't legal or financial advice.
Scope: this grades a checkout flow you describe and returns a conversion-UX judgment. It scores the flow, not people, and is not legal or financial advice. Confirm tax, fee-disclosure, and consent requirements for your market with your own advisor.
Anyone who owns a checkout and a conversion number.
- Ecommerce founders — who feel traffic is fine but sales lag, and need to know where the cart leaks.
- CRO & growth teams — making the financial case for a checkout redesign with a concrete dominant-driver finding.
- Agencies — auditing a client's checkout and routing the fix to a clear priority order.
- Solo & SMB stores — one product or a booking flow; the gap between added cart and completed sale is still real money.
Grade the whole path to purchase, page by page.
Straight answers before you buy.
Stop losing the sale at the last step.
Find the driver and fix it.
One purchase, lifetime access, 12 months of updates. $79, once.
Scope: grades a checkout flow you describe and returns a conversion-UX judgment. It scores the flow, not people, and is not legal or financial advice.
Sold by RedHub AI LLC · Secured by Stripe · redhub.ai